As we continue navigating the COVID-19 pandemic, primary care providers play a crucial role in the ongoing response. To help ensure you are up-to-date with the most current medically accurate data and information, Riley Children’s Health will continue to provide resources and important information on this page.
To help you answer questions from patients and families, we’ve created an online resource center. There, you can find helpful information from our Riley physicians to share including condition-specific guidance, free screening information, and steps to prevent the spread of the virus. Please email rileychildrens@IUHealth.org if you have any specific questions. Thank you for your partnership.
Updates
Updates
Riley Children's Health is happy to serve as a resource for the Indiana pediatric medical community. Effective Sept. 1, 2021, we are offering 24/7 direct Doc2Doc support for care teams around the state who are treating patients with respiratory illnesses. This collaboration will allow children to receive care closer to home during this COVID-19 surge. View full details.
View additional COVID-19 updates for Riley Children's Health at rileychildrens.org/covid-19-updates.
Town Halls
Town Halls
To best partner and communicate with all medical providers in our community, our team continues to host Riley Children’s Health Virtual Town Halls. These virtual meetings allow our team of experts to provide the most up-to-date information about COVID-19 while answering commonly asked questions about emerging trends related to children’s health. The following are topics recently discussed: COVID-19 cases and hospitalizations in Indiana, management of the pediatric population during the pandemic, and recognition of symptoms and precautions related to the virus. Recent Town Halls focused on COVID-19 are listed below.
- Nov. 12, 2020: COVID-19 Update
- Dec. 14, 2020: COVID-19 Vaccine Q&A with Experts
- July 29, 2021: COVID-19 Update, MIS-C Clinic, and Vaccines
- Sept. 14, 2021: COVID-19 Update and Emergency Department Trends
For registration information for our next Town Hall, or if you would like to receive a recording of a previous presentation, please email rileychildrens@IUHealth.org.
Patient Care Resources
Patient Care Resources
Below are PDF resources for patient care related to COVID-19 in pediatric patients.
Testing Information
Testing Information
Our approach to COVID-19 testing remains focused on individuals who have symptoms that are consistent with the virus. This rationale follows CDC guidance and is to ensure we have sufficient testing capacity to treat potentially critically ill patients. While testing of asymptomatic people is not available through Riley or IU Health, there are external sites that offer this type of testing.
If your patients are seeking a COVID-19 test for clearance to participate in activities such as sports, in-person classes or other school related events should be referred to an external testing provider. Included below are three options for asymptomatic testing outside of Riley and IU Health:
- The Indiana State Department of Health (ISDH) continues to expand its drive-through testing clinics across the state. Testing is free for anyone age 12 and up who lives or works in Indiana. Locations change frequently; check the online map to find a drive-through clinic near you.
- The ISDH also partners with OptumServe to provide testing sites across the state. Registration is required; patients can self-schedule online or by phone at 888.634.1116. Testing is free for anyone living and working in Indiana; children may be tested as well.
- Aria Diagnostics offers testing at two locations on the north side of Indianapolis. Note that a test order from a provider is required to bill insurance, or self-pay tests are available for $135 with a 72-hour turnaround time.
As a reminder, we continue to provide COVID-19 screening via the Virtual Screening Clinic, where people currently located in Indiana can connect with a healthcare provider and review their symptoms.
Visitation
Visitation
The COVID-19 pandemic continues to impact our Indiana community and the rest of the country. At IU Health, every hospital in the system is feeling the effects of the spread of the virus and the increase in the number of COVID-19 patients.
As COVID-19 cases continue to emerge, IU Health is updating visitor guidance to prevent spread, minimize the traffic within its buildings and keep patients, families, and team members safe. Precautions taken to ensure patient safety include masking procedures and requirements, visitor guidelines, social distancing and continual disinfecting.
View full visitor guidelines at rileychildrens.org/covid-19-updates.
Video Resources
WATCH: Our infectious disease experts share information around COVID-19, how it can impact children, how healthcare workers can protect themselves, and much more.
Frequently Asked Questions
Frequently Asked Questions
Are surgeries and specialty care appointments continuing?
At this time, IU Health is temporarily suspending all elective inpatient surgeries and procedures requiring an inpatient stay. This change is to relieve pressure on our care teams so they are available for those patients with immediate needs.
We do continue to accept referrals for new patients. Referrals can be made online, via fax, or by calling the applicable department.
Most primary care and specialty care follow-up visits are conducted as a virtual or telephone visit. All urgent/critical patients and referrals are reviewed on a case-by-case basis to determine if an in-person appointment is necessary. In the event they are not urgent, and the patient prefers to be seen in-person, the appointments have been rescheduled. Patients are encouraged to call their specialist if their symptoms worsen prior to their appointment.
When should PCPs send patients to the Riley at IU Health Emergency Department?
Our Riley at IU Health Emergency Department has seen a record number of patients the last few weeks. To ensure our staff is treating patients that need immediate care, we ask for support directing patients to the appropriate care setting for COVID-19 testing. If a patient is asymptomatic, please have them visit Indiana State Department of Health (ISDH) to find the nearest testing location. If a patient is symptomatic and needs urgent care, please continue to send them to the ED.
If you suspect your patient may have COVID-19, you may also consider introducing them to the IU Health Virtual Visits app for an initial screening and support on what to do next. Staffed with IU Health physicians, advance practice providers and registered nurses, the clinic will screen patients from home, potentially eliminating the need to visit physician offices, urgent cares or emergency departments.
Visit rileychildrens.org/emergency to access an interactive tool that allows patients and families to view walk-in wait times and check-in online for both the IU Health North and Riley Hospital EDs. This allows parents to see wait times of both emergency rooms, provides flexibility in choosing which location is most convenient, offers families the ability to choose an arrival time that meets their needs, and minimizes time in the waiting room by selecting a check-in time prior to arrival.
- IMACS (consults) and the Transfer Center (transfers) continue to be available:
- IMACS (800.622.4989)
- Transfer Center (877.247.1177)
How will I know if you are treating my patient for COVID-19?
If your patient is seen at Riley at IU Health for suspected COVID-19 (or any other condition), you will receive our standard follow-up communications regarding ER summary, admission, discharge, etc.
If one of my patients is an inpatient at Riley at IU Health, what can they expect?
The clinical staff and providers at Riley at IU Health are trained on the identification, isolation and treatment of COVID-19 and other infectious diseases. At this point in time:
- If an inpatient does not have cold or flu-like symptoms, they will continue to receive care without change.
- If the primary caregiver has symptoms of fever or cough, they should not visit.
We are working hard to utilize all of our extensive resources as a comprehensive children’s hospital to support our patients and families during this stressful time through our robust online resource center.
The situation with COVID-19 is evolving rapidly and procedures for patient care will change as necessary to best protect patients, their families and staff. Please continue to check this site for more updated information or email rileychildrens@IUHealth.org.
Do you have resources or patient support materials I can share with my patients?
To help answer questions from patients and families, we’ve created an online resource center. There, you can find helpful information from our expert physicians about steps you can take to prevent the spread of the virus and how to a get a free screening if you suspect you have it.
We also ask our primary care providers in our community to continue to reference and share information from appropriate public health authorities and other trustworthy information sources, including: